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Granted that im still New at the game, but I find difficult to play it=>do damage.

Survival is not a problem, and maybe this is part of the issue here I usually stay alive until the end of the game unless I commit a mistake, maybe I need to be more aggressive

I play mainly CLs, Dallas and Helena and Eugen is a bit different with the RoF.

I usually do around 20000 (with CLs too) damage mostly in Ranked, as most of time I am MM with T9 and T10 i usually battle at 12-14km of the target... Because everyone maintain that distance or higher and afaik you should not go alone.

Use HE and when someone shows the broadsidei change to AP, my Captain build is the usual for the ship and i lvl 11.

Any advice? Should I stay with CL a bit more or buy the Cleveland if I want to go to T8?

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I do not have lots of experience with German CA but they work quite differently than US Cruiser. First: Prinz Eugeu is a poor island hugger: his shots are too direct to lobe them over island. Second, they are not great kitter. If she can get hit more than their French or Russian counterpart, Prinz Eugen lack speed and maneuverability and her HE are too lackluster for that kind of long range shoot out. I feel like she is better as a ''brawler cruiser'': with her armor scheme and her heal she can survive more punishment than many other ships, and her AP are devastating on other cruiser in short range. Kind of tricky to play, but quite rewarding.

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Admiral Hipper / Prinz Eugen are decent performers at range. Shell flight characteristics are great. The HE don't have high, raw alpha damage but they pen reliably. They pen even 50mm wheras Non-German 203mm guns can't. Your HP is great. If someone makes a mistake use it, even against BBs and get good spike damage. They're powerful enough to make Cruisers pay dearly and strong enough to rip good HP chunks off a BB.

However, in a High Tier match, you do need to know when it's time to hold fire and go dark. When your Priority Target counter is at 3 or more, you're not far away from some BB getting lucky and smashing you. Understand also that taking BB shells at range is where your protection fails the most.

Also, Hipper / P.Eugen are dangerous short ranged combatants. When you get under 9km of them, their protection gets better as it's what they're ideal for. Also, they pack lots of 6km torpedoes per side of the ship. IMO, given any opportunity to dance with people around islands, every Hipper / P.Eugen player should seriously consider doing so. Your attack options skyrocket with torpedoes now a possibility, and your armor holds up better. If you switched out Defensive Fire for Hydro, that great Tier VIII German Hydro is amazing in giving you awareness around islands, dense map areas.

Matter of fact, I think of the Tier VIII German CAs as a trainer in how to use Hindenburg in Tier X. The very same things of how you use the VIII German CAs applies to how you use Hindenburg. Roon in Tier IX, due to her gun arrangement and weaker torpedo loadout, doesn't play as much like the Tier VIII & X ones. She's basically a Super K-/N-Berg and not like the family of CAs like VII York -> VIII Hipper / Eugen -> X Hindenburg.

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Developing that sense for when you can push in, and when you need to pull back is key in any ship. And really, the trick is identifying that BEFORE you’re in that situation, because it’s usually too late to do anything about it once you’re stuck in.

I have to go to work in 5 minutes so I don't have the time to write up a good and long response. However, a few basic tips:

You have the most powerful 203mm AP shells in the game, use them. A lot.

Your HE shells are artificially nerfed to balance out great AP. Use HE when you must, but consider AP your primary shell.

Fire HE at sharply angled battleships, AP at unangled battleships and angled cruisers' superstructures, AP at broadside cruiser hulls, your choice of AP or HE at destroyers.

You have torpedoes, but that doesn't mean you have to use them. They're a weapon of opportunity. Don't suicide to get a torpedo launch off.

Your armor scheme actually works better the closer you are to the enemy. You're still a cruiser, so you'll still die under withering fire, but don't be afraid to close in.

Keep your angles in mind. Either drive sharply towards the enemy or sharply away from them, ideally so sharply you can just get all your turrets on him. Zig zag between enemy reloads.

Your hydro and heal are consumables. Don't be afraid to approach smoke clouds with your hydro on to ferret out destroyers or to take some damage in trades and use your heal.

If you're the bottom tier ship in a T10 match, you are the support ship. Don't expect others to support you; you support them.

If you're top tier you're more of a bully. Keep your angles in mind and brutalize smaller cruisers.

Destroyers are your main food.

There's no shame in playing in coop or sticking to lower tier matches until you figure out a ship or the game in general.

I agree with most of Lert's comments here, with a few of observations:

I find cruisers are my primary food when playing the Hipper and Eugen. You should prioritize destroyers when they are spotted, but your efficacy (using the AP) is against cruisers.

Use AP against broadside battleships. Aim a little below the deck line against German and some other battleships with weaker upper belts, and aim at the deck line for most other battleships.

Use your range and high-velocity shells to play at range early in a battle (or when uptiered), then close in when opponents are thinned and you can engage one-on-one.

In mid- and close-quarters, your 27mm bow can bounce sub-400mm AP shells used by the Bismarck, Tirpitz, Monarch, Richelieu, Alsace, Roma and the like. This can be useful if you are charging one of those battleships in close quarters. Battleships with super-400mm shells, if they know how to aim properly, will simply overmatch your bow and citadel you.

As Lert pointed out, usage of torpedoes is opportunistic, e.g., in ambush situations or where your target is distracted. Trying to rush a battleship from 10km when he sees you coming is usually futile since you'll either be cut down or he'll simply sail away.